Chickens

Chicken coop plans and tips for homesteaders and backyard farmers. Maybe you’re dreaming of a backyard chicken coop and looking for free DIY chicken coop plans. Or maybe you are already keeping chickens and you’re finding your chicken coop is not meeting your needs. This is the article for you!

Today I’m going to share my best tips for chicken coops, chicken coop tips and maintenance and some free chicken coop plans for you to consider for a DIY project!

Chicken Coop Plans and Tips

What purpose does a chicken coop have?

The purpose of a chicken coop will vary on the goals of the homesteader or backyard farmer. The basic purpose is to keep your hens safe (especially if you don’t or can’t have a rooster). Even in a backyard, chickens can fall prey to a variety of hungry animals. Your chicken area must be predator proof! See Backyard Chicken Predators.

But a chicken coop will also serve to keep your chickens from eating your garden, laying eggs in undesirable places and pooping on everything. A secure chicken coop will also keep nasty rodents from eating your feed and drinking their water. See Keeping Rats and Mice Out of Your Chicken Coop

Not to mention they need a place to sleep at night!

Isn’t Better to Free Range My Chickens?

I think it is great to free-range chickens! Better for their health and better for your eggs. BUT you absolutely still need a chicken coop (see reasons above). For me, my hens remain in their coop from sundown until they’ve laid their eggs for the day. Then they are allowed to roam the backyard happily eating bugs, weeds and grass. But I keep my raised beds protected from the hens, otherwise I could not allow them to free range in our mini homestead.

How big should the chicken coop be?

Everyone has a different opinion on how big you should build your chicken enclousure. First if you cannot allow your chickens to do any free ranging you want to give them as much space as you can “afford” on your property. I always side on bigger is better.

Here a things to consider when you’re planning your backyard coop:

What size chickens will you be raising? Smaller bantam breeds, like a Silkie, will need a minimum of 2 square feet per bird in the coop and 4 square feet of run space. A standard sized chicken, like a Rhode Island Red should have at least 4 square feet in the coop and 8 square feet in the run per bird. Now if you are choosing a larger chicken breed like the Jersey Giant then you’re looking at chicken coop plans for 6 to 8 square feet in the coop and more than 10 square feet in the run.

Coop all the time vs some free roam time.

Some people plan to only have a coop and no run because chickens are free ranging during daylight hours.

How many chickens will you be keeping?

How often will you be cleaning? A smaller coop is going to get messier and smell much faster!

Do you want to be able to walk in your chicken coop and run? You’ll need to consider height of your enclosure too.

Chicken Coop Plans for Location

When it comes to real estate, location is key, right? That is true when planning your chicken area location as well. Of course these tips will vary on how much actual space you have to offer. Here are a few things to consider in your chicken coop plans:

What Does My Chicken Coop Need?

Protected Food – or you’ll be feeding rodents. I recommend investing in a treadle feeder that can only be opened by weight (chicken’s weigh a lot more than rats).

Water dispenser – a hanging waterer may offer you some protection from pests.

Plenty of light and ventilation in both the coop and run

A perch or roosting bar with room enough for all birds to sleep there at night or multiple perches if necessary.

Lighting – hotly debated but if you want more eggs in the winter you may need supplemental lighting.

A area for dust baths. Chickens need to take regular dust baths to keep clean and parasite free. You can offer them and area or make sure you have room for the to dig their own.

What is it like to start a backyard chicken coop?

A small backyard chicken coop is a wonderful addition to a home. Fresh eggs, poop to compost and funny little winged dinosaurs to entertain you. But you need to know what you’re getting into. They don’t lay forever – yes you’ll need an “exit plan” for hens when they are done with laying.

How to build an inexpensive chicken coop?

You can build your own chicken coop with these free DIY Chicken Coop Plans. A DIY chicken coop sounds like a money saver but before you decide to DIY ask yourself these questions.

Are chicken coops really easy to build?

Does the person giving you plans actually know how to build a chicken coop?

Do I have any building experience or expertise? Nothing will cost you more than trying to build a coop with absolutely no knowledge of basic instruction. So if you don’t have it and can’t find someone to help you for free then is a DIY Chicken Coop Plan really saving you money?

Are the materials available to me for a discount or free? Again if the materials make the coop more expensive than the kit, is it worth it? Now the difference may be that the quality of the coop is much better and will last a much longer time; making the more expensive initial investment worth it.

Do you have the time to build a chicken coop? I think this one speaks for itself.

Free Chicken Coop Plans for DIY

If you are set on building a DIY chicken coop here are a few plans worth checking out.

Buying a Chicken Coop on Amazon

You really can buy just about anything on Amazon, including some decent chicken coops that you can put together yourself. But be sure to read the reviews, carefully check the dimensions and consider the materials for your area (will they hold up to the elements?). An Amazon chicken coop might be a great starter coop or one to use while you’re building your dream chicken coop.

Hens that lay colored eggs just seem to be my favorite girls. I have a chicken that lays a light blue egg and one that lays a light olive egg. I don’t know why but there is something extra special about pulling a blue or green egg out of the nest…in fact any color than white it pretty exciting to me. It is like Easter everyday!

Hens That Lay Colored Eggs

So if you’re looking to add some color to your egg basket I’m here to help that happen! I have listed some great chicken breeds that will offer a rainbow of unique colors to your coop.

I’m sure I haven’t listed every hen that will lay colorful eggs; this isn’t an exhaustive list. However these are the chicken breeds I’ve had personal experience with and I feel comfortable recommending them.

Chickens That Lay Brown Eggs

Brown isn’t just brown in the egg basket. You can get variations from cream to deep dark chocolate brown eggs. The chicken breeds to look at for brown eggs would be:

Rhode Island Reds – one of my personal favorites as they are great layers with a fun personality. Whenever we have a RIR they are usually the queen of the flock. The Rhode Island Red will lay a lighter brown egg, and usually every single day.

Barred Rock – another great brown egg layer. The Barred Rock is one of my youngest daughter’s favorite breeds. I have found that ours have had great personalities, though they are a bit more on the “flighty” side. Great layers!

Wyandottes – lays a big brown egg. The Wyandottes are a truly beautiful bird that come in several varieties! The Wyandotte hens I’ve had tend to go broody more often than other breeds; something to consider when you’re looking for layers.

Australorp – lays a large brown egg. These are gentle giants as hens go. A really sweet, docile bird that can be great if you have the space for them.

Marans – The Maran is thought to have originated from several heritage breed chickens. They are great layers who produce a gorgeous dark brown egg; simply stunning. The Maran is known to be a docile bird and a great forager so they’d be perfect for free range chicken flocks.

Chickens That Lay Blue and Green Eggs

Cream Legbar – lays a beautiful blue egg. I don’t have a Cream Legbar yet but I’ve been very impressed with my research on this bird. We are hoping to add in 2 hens this fall. They can be hard to come by and apparently Martha Stewart keeps some (la te da).

Araucana – lays a blue egg. The Araucana is a very rare bird, do your research if you really want a true Araucana. Your best bet is to find a reputable breeder.

Ameraucana – lays eggs ranging from blue to green. Not to be confused with the Araucana, the Ameraucana is its own breed and lays eggs in a range of blue to green. I have 2 of these birds and they are fun to watch but tend to be a bit nervous and flighty; but that is just my experience.

Easter Egger – the EE hen can lay a wide variety of colors from cream to pink and into blues and greens. This is a hybrid bird so you won’t know what you’re going to get until she lays. Generally a docile bird that lays well.

Olive Egger – this hen has the capability to lay a light olive to dark olive green egg. The Olive Egger is a hybrid bird and most of the breeders won’t tell you exactly which birds they are using in their program. But first generation layers won’t always have an olive colored egg or it will be very light. Further into generations you’ll get truer olive colored eggs. Fun!

I love having a backyard chicken flock no matter what color eggs they produce. But I do love a beautiful egg shell. There is something special about having a bowl full of blue, green and brown eggs to choose from every morning. I know that I go out of my way to choose chickens that lay colorful eggs.

I hope my little guide to hens that lay colored eggs will help you choose your next breed. It is like Easter all year long when you have colored eggs in the nest! Do you raise hens for colored eggs? Which breed do you like best?

What to do about chicken nesting boxes and materials is a question I hear from a lot of my readers. So today I want to go over the tips and tricks I’ve learned about chicken nesting boxes over the years. I am also going to share some simple DIY chicken nesting boxes you can make yourself and save some money (win!).

Your Guide to the Best Chicken Nesting Boxes

Let’s go over a few basics you need to know about how chickens prefer to lay eggs and nesting boxes 101. These are important considerations for chicken nesting boxes because this is what will keep your hen laying daily for as long as possible!

Chicken Nesting Boxes Tips

Your hen wants privacy above all else. Remember she believes she is laying eggs that will hatch so safety is number one. Nesting boxes provide your hens a place to lay, making it easier for you to collect the eggs vs letting them lay where ever they please.You want your nesting boxes to be:

Not too much light

Private

Quiet

Safe (away from other animals)

Clean and fresh

Generally you want to place your chicken’s nesting box in her coop

Best Material for Chicken Nesting Boxes

Whether you decided to construct your own nesting boxes or buy a pre-made box, there are some considerations to keep in my. The biggest concern is being able to keep your nesting box clean. So you want to pick a box or materials to make one that can be washed, scrubbed and sterilized.

Wood Nesting Boxes

You’ll often see chicken nesting boxes made of wood, which isn’t awful; but cleaning it will break it down over time. And I worry that it can’t really be sterilized efficiently. You can find these pre-made wooden boxes or free plans for you own.

Plastic Nesting Boxes

Chicken nesting boxes made of plastic have some real advantages too. First, they are easily cleaned and sterilized. They are usually less expensive than their metal counterparts and won’t heat up as much in the summer. They do risk the wearing down in direct sun though, so that should be a consideration. Check out these plastic options:Poly Egg Nesting Boxes, 6 packWall Mounted Nesting Box, 2 pack

Best Bedding Material For Chicken Nesting Boxes

Bedding really does matter for your chicken nesting boxes. Of course we want our laying hens to be comfortable but most importantly we want them to be healthy.

Reusable Nest Liners – These washable nest liners are a great option for reusable, easy to clean and ready-made nest materials.

Straw or Hay – a great affordable option for your chicken nesting boxes is simply using straw or hay. It has a great sweet aroma, ok for the hens to eat and can be bought in bulk for a savings.

Wood Shavings – most popular would be pine or cedar shavings. I like that shavings offer a pleasant aroma and general dry quickly. They can be pricey if you’re getting them at a pet store so shop around! You should check out Fresh Eggs Daily’s post on Straw vs Shavings for more information.

Yard Waste – I have seen a few people recommend using fallen leaves or grass clippings as chicken nesting materials. This is definitely a no-cost option but I caution you to be careful of your source. Trees and grass are often treated with chemicals and we don’t want that around our hens! These are also not the most absorbent materials so you’ll need to change them often.

Sand – It can be a great option for ease of clean up and quick to dry. However sand does heat up so it would not be a great option for hot climates. It also does not offer the comfort to your hen that the other nesting box materials will. Be VERY careful with using fine sand that can cause respiratory issues.

Herbs for Chicken Nesting Boxes

Have you considered herbs for your chicken nesting boxes? Herbs aren’t just a way to add a scent to the coop, they have some important contributions to health and wellness for your laying hens too.

Here are a few popular herbs that can benefit your hens when added to their nests.

Basil – Has a calming effectCatnip – Can be an effective insect repellent Dill – Improves chicken respiratory health and can also be calmingFennel – Can increase laying in hensLavender- Relaxing, smells wonderful and can in increases blood circulationLemon Balm – Relaxing and can deter rats and mic How to have a Rodent Free CoopMarigolds – Helps to keep insects at bay. Mint – Rodent and insect repellent, smells wonderfulNettles – RelaxingParsley – Vitamin boostRose Petals – Calming and aromatic (make sure they are pesticide free)Thyme – Great for respiratory healthYarrow- Reduces stress

If you don’t want to collect all these herbs yourself there are great pre-made options available especially made for chicken nesting boxes.

Chicken Nesting Boxes Questions

How Many Hens Per Nesting Box?

This is a highly debatable topic but I’ll give you my opinion, based on my backyard hens. I have often found that one box for every 4 – 5 hens is sufficient. And what is really funny is that even when I had 1 box PER HEN, they often all laid in the same box. I would laugh to see them upset when their favorite nesting box was already occupied! What a ruckus!

How do I get my hens to lay in nesting boxes?

If you follow all of the above suggestions the likelihood is your hens will lay there without any coaxing from you. However if you find that they are laying outside of your offerings here are a few tricks to try:

Put a fake egg in the boxes to give them the idea that this is a preferred laying area.

If they are free range hens you might want to wait until they’ve laid (mid-morning) before letting them out of the coop.

Final Word on Chicken Nesting Boxes

Hens are animals like like clean and safe environments for laying. Provide them nesting boxes that meet those two requirements and you won’t have to worry about much else. Sure, there may be an occasional stray layer but you can usually get her back on track with a little training.

Take good care of your girls, and they’ll provide healthy and delicious eggs for years.

The best gifts for the crazy chicken people in your life… or the guide you should give to people for you! Maybe you’re shopping for a crazy chicken lady or guy in your life, or maybe that’s you and you want to give your family and friends some gift ideas; either way this is the guide you need!

First, let’s define “crazy chicken people”. Hands up if you know you are one! ME! I have chicken shirts, chicken mugs, chicken decorations on my wall (and Christmas tree)…oh and the chickens in the backyard. I just love chickens! It may seem crazy to others, but to me it is normal. So I say crazy chicken people in jest.

I’ve broken down all the best gifts for crazy chicken people into easy to shop categories. I do recommend starting early because a lot of these fun items will sell out fast during the holiday shopping. Happy shopping folks!

Why Do People Love All This Chicken Stuff?

Most people that love these chicken themed gifts have just fallen in love with their backyard hens. For me, I had lots of chickened things around before I actually had my own hens; I just knew I wanted them. The mugs make me smile every morning when I pour my coffee. I love looking at the farm-themed chicken decor on my walls because it says something about me. And I love wearing the funny t-shirts and hoodies because it usually gives me a chance to talk about backyard chickens to people who may never have considered them before.

What ever your reason for being here, I can assure you that these are the best gifts for crazy chicken people…and they are going to love and use them!

Maybe YOU Want Backyard Chickens Too!

If you stumbled over to this awesome gift guide for chicken people, maybe you want chickens too. I love my backyard hens and have written many articles here to help you get started with chicks, keeping secret hens, fighting your HOA for your chickens much more. See all my chicken articles here!

Crazy Chicken People Socks, Shoes & Leggings

I received the yellow chicken sloggers as a gift a few years ago and I love them. But my family has requested that I wear them in the garden only… But I’m thinking the chicken leggings are part of a definite outside-the-house outfit! Would you wear any of these in public? If not, you might not truly be a crazy chicken person (no judgement).

I hope this list helps you in your shopping for our lovable crazy chicken people (know I am sending this to my husband right after I publish it). Do you love getting chicken themed gifts? What’s the best one you’ve received? OR are you overwhelmed with chickens? Is it time to just say no?

Backyard livestock is a hot topic these days. Can livestock really be raised in a traditional backyard? Yes, and you’ll be amazed what you can do! I have narrowed it down to 5 of the best choices for backyard livestock that can work for a board range of those backyard farming in neighborhoods…even HOAs!

Backyard Livestock The Best Choices

Backyard Livestock

Whatever backyard livestock you decide upon remember the 3 Ps before you start: Planning, Planning and Planning. Make sure you have space for your garden and that your animals have a clean and healthy environment; we don’t want to look like a factory farm. The goal is to offer your livestock a good life while they offer you some wonderful food options.

Don’t take on too much all at once. Start small and give yourself the room to add more on in the future. Animals are work – no matter how much you love them and all they offer. And they’ll need to be cared for when you’re sick or on vacation. So before you make the leap, think out all the requirements.

Now onto your 5 great options for Backyard Livestock!

Quail

Coturnix quail are one of the best options for backyard livestock. They are small and can be housed in a variety of ways. Most conventional quail raisers will tell you cages are best but I have seen cooped quail thrive and live out a very happy life. They’ll need a minimum of 1 square foot per bird; so keep that in mind when planning your space. So what’s so great about Coturnix quail? Well for starters you can expect eggs to start coming at 6 weeks and birds are full grown by about 8 weeks old. Hens are egg laying maniacs! A single hen will lay about 300 eggs a year. The Coturnix quail egg is about 3 or 4 to one average chicken egg – but they are creamy and delicious. There is nothing a fun as frying up some mini eggs for breakfast!

Coturnix quail roosters DO make noise. I see a lot of people saying they don’t and that is simply untrue. They don’t make the same noise that chicken rooster does but it can be equally annoying to your neighbors…and you might find yourself wishing death on him at 3:00 am. Just saying. So you may want to consider keeping only hens for egg production.

However quail meat is really awesome. It is a dark meat with a turkey-like flavor, delish. They are small so most people will need a few to feel like they had a full meal. However when you consider that you can process them at 8 weeks,it isn’t a lot of time to commit. They are processed quickly, no plucking needed! If you want to raise quail for meat you’ll want to keep a 4 or 5 hen to one roo ratio for best fertility. You’ll have to collect the eggs and incubate them yourself; hens are not broody.

Overall quail are pretty low maintenance. Just make sure you keep them on a high protein feed, I like turkey starter with mealworm treats. If they don’t have enough protein they will cannibalize…nasty and sad.

The great thing about quail is that they are often consider pets and not a livestock. This can make keeping them a lot easier than other fowl in a traditional neighborhood. Be sure to check with your zoning office.

Chickens

I love chickens. They are great for eggs and will keep your backyard free of bugs and other pests. Chickens have a lot more personality than quails so you may find yourself getting a bit more attached to your backyard ladies too. Our girls all have names. Chickens are great egg producers depending on breed. But they do take a long time to get to laying age; 4 – 8 months should be expected. Being bigger they require more space but they are happy just to have a yard to roam during the day and will coop up at night.

You can’t beat a backyard chicken egg. My favorite part of the morning is coming out to the sweet egg song. Chickens are a lot of fun. Your kids will love them too. Our girls seems to favor my youngest.

Raising chickens for meat as a backyard livestock is challenging. They take a few months to grow out and frankly, I find them stinky. We found that we didn’t have adequate space to give the birds quality of life. At least not to raise enough to make it worth our time. And the flies…oh good gracious the flies. Something about those meat varieties just seemed to be harder to keep the area clean and tidy.

A chicken requires no less than 4 square feet of living space. This can be challenging if you want to keep them in a segregated yard. We like the chunnel (chicken tunnel) for offering backyard birds space to run safe, without taking up our valuable gardening space.

What about roosters you ask? Well we don’t keep one because we’ve lost our girls once before and we want our neighbors to stay happy. But I have heard a lot of great things about the No Crow Collar but I haven’t tried it myself. I think a better option is buying fertile eggs from a reputable breeder and doing your own incubation. OR trying giving your broody girl a few to raise. Remember when your ladies are broody and sitting on eggs, they aren’t laying. Something to consider when you think about raising chicks.

Last question you need to answer…what happens when they stop laying? Are you prepared to process your layers when they aren’t laying efficiently anymore? Most hens lay heavily for 3 years and slow down after that. If you don’t have space in your backyard for a lot of hens you’ll need to make space for new girls. If you’re not going to eat them then you need to have a plan for “retirement”.

Rabbits

Meat rabbits are an awesome addition to your backyard livestock. Efficient and quiet – your neighbors probably will never know you have them. Rabbits have been raised as a meat source for thousands of years. In fact Romans were raising rabbits nearly 2,000 years ago in small walled garden. During World War II, when meat rations were low, governments encouraged families to raise rabbits in the backyards to increase their meat options.

Rabbits are fairly easy to keep – they need at least a 3 x 2 foot cage. I would recommend more space instead of less. I prefer a cage system to avoid most parasites that ground rabbits are susceptible to. However many find that raising rabbits in colonies to work wonderfully and giving the rabbits a more natural life.

I recommend starting with a breeding trio of 2 does and a buck. This can keep a family of 4 eating rabbit meat 1 – 2 times a week, minimum. Processing, once you are comfortable can be under 10 minutes from cage to cooler. There are a lot of humane options for this so make sure you do your research. Most will look at a pellet gun or cervical dislocation. If you can find someone with experience to walk you through your first process, great; there are also a lot of great videos on YouTube to show you.

When someone asks me what rabbit tastes like…it is a lot like chicken. Mainly white meat and very lean.

Special considerations – if you leave in the desert like us you’ll need to take some precautions during the heat of the summer. Rabbits need to be kept cool and will not breed during hot summer months. We use shade, frozen water bottles, fans and misters to keep everyone comfortable.

Ducks

Specifically Muscovy ducks, can be a great addition to your backyard livestock. Why Muscovy? Well let’s start with the fact that the don’t quack. They make quiet hissing and pipping noises but nothing like your run-of-the-mill duck. Because of this you can even have a rooster. They also don’t need a big pond to be happy but they will need water and you’ll need to clean it a lot. Muscovies have tasty eggs and meat as well. They aren’t the proficient layers as quail or chickens but you’ll love the taste! They love to forage…and they will do so in your garden if you don’t protect it. But they’ll also eat flies, mosquitoes and snails so they are an asset in pest control. They should be kept in pairs and you’ll need to clip their wings because they are supremo fliers! When you consider housing you’ll need to make sure to offer them a roost – yep they roost.

Muscovies are territorial and require more space than chickens so that is something to consider when you planning on them. They also don’t do as well in confinement. But if you decide to let them run loose, you should know that their, um, poo runs loose too. This loose stool can be an awesome natural fertilizer but you might not care if that is on your porch.

The Muscovy is a great, quiet fowl. But you’ll need to make some special provisions for them.

Goats for Milk and Meat

The dwarf Nigerian goat is a wonderful compact option for backyard livestock. Goat’s milk is fabulously nutritious and those who are lactose intolerant can often drink it without issue. Yummy milk, awesome cheese and tastes great in your coffee too.

This great little goat is a small version takes up about a 1/4 of the space that a full sized dairy goat would need. But they do need space – most recommend at least 16 square feet per goat. And you’ll want more than one because they are a herding animal – they need a herd to be happy. So when you’re thinking about a goat think 2 goats minimum. Some want 2 dairy goats and others will keep one doe and a wether (castrated buck) for company. You also need good fencing and some housing to keep them out of the weather.

They have fun personalities and you’ll enjoy being around them. Not to mention they can keep your bushes trimmed back.

But goats aren’t for all backyard farms – even if you have the space. Goats are NOT quiet. They like to talk and some people find their chatter very annoying. However I have a friend that fitted her doe with a dog bark collar and after awhile she was able to remove it and the goat continued to be quiet. That is an extreme measure and it may not work for all goats. This isn’t a livestock to jump into without talking to your neighbors and checking your zoning.

If you decide not to keep goats in your yard you may want to consider boarding a goat near by so you have access to that awesome milk!

I hope that I’ve helped you in making some livestock decisions for your backyard homestead. I love raising animals and I am always amazed what we can do on our “micro farm”.

Topics

Footer

Recent Posts

Amazon Associates Disclosure

The Imperfectly Happy Home is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com